Protected's recent activity
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Protected Link ParentHurray, congrats on finishing Big Walk! (holds Q+E) So you call them gourds, do you? My designation of noses (because they look like the noses on the ants) isn't very popular. One of my friends...Hurray, congrats on finishing Big Walk! (holds Q+E)
So you call them gourds, do you? My designation of noses (because they look like the noses on the ants) isn't very popular. One of my friends wants us to use McGuffins, reminiscent of Supraland. Another one prefers pears. I think it's a tildes users type situation though.
If I know this group, we're definitely 100%ing it. I think we have seen what we need to do to reach the ending though.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Protected (edited )LinkI played Trombone Champ, a gift from @ricewind . For all my life I've been deaf to the truth, but this excellent rhythm game has taught me the real history of trombones, classical composers, hot...I played Trombone Champ, a gift from @ricewind . For all my life I've been deaf to the truth, but this excellent rhythm game has taught me the real history of trombones, classical composers, hot dogs and baboons. It's packed with educational, 100% legit information. Trust me, swear to Babi and hope to toot.
The core gameplay is very simple: Levels require pressing and holding a key (or clicking) to the tune of a song. But in order to succeed you need to use your mouse to align an on-screen target up and down to match the pitch of each note, the resulting arm movement presumably evoking the motion of operating the slide of a trombone. It's a really neat idea, very fun, not too punishing for the most part, and the trombone sound generation works really well! During the level, on-screen elements and musical arrangement plot twists will try to distract you, typically by making you laugh. The laughter is compounded by trombones naturally sounding funny when you play them poorly, which you will. There are a whopping 75 levels in the base game (plus several DLCs I don't own for things like Celeste and Deltarune, a level editor and many free user-published levels on Steam workshop.)
The game also features a meta-story-progression that ties in with unlockable content such as new trombone sounds, trombone colors, characters and a card collecting minigame featuring classical composers and other things. I had a lot of fun completing all of this. Trombone Champ is a charming game whose base content can be completed in 5-6 hours and which definitely doesn't overstay its welcome; I can understand why people wanted more of it.
Even though it's not Steam Deck certified, Trombone Champ runs perfectly on Linux. The reason it can't be certified is the mouse requirement. This game was designed to be played with a mouse - and which mouse you use does impact your experience (my shitty mouse had a tendency to be in the wrong place in my desk half way through the song and there is no time to reset it; I recommend a decent, big mouse you can rest your whole hand on). I read reports of it playing poorly on gamepads and touchpads, and promises of improvements from the devs, but didn't investigate further.
Before this I finished Deer & Boy. This game took 4h30m in total. In my first impressions, I highlighted the many similarities with Planet of Lana, but toward the end the game gets more abstract and melancholic. So there's your warning - this game may make you sad. Onions and all.
There are missable achievements for not doing certain things perfectly, but you can return to any point in the story later on using the main menu.
I've been playing Big Walk with a group of friends that overlaps those who played the Lingo games, Blue Prince, Neyyah and Windblown with me. Basically this is currently on my multiplayer slot. I was interested in this game, which was made by the devs of Untitled Goose Game, from the very first weird trailer, so I pushed for us to start this ASAP.
Since the game is actually blowing up you may already know this, but Big Walk is a multiplayer-ONLY game for 2 to 12 people designed around cooperative puzzle solving or challenge solving. Each player inhabits a goofy looking ant made of three spheres with stick limbs. Ants can only talk to other ants who are standing very close to them (you're not supposed to be on a voice call!), raise their arms, squat, push buttons, hold one item at a time, or hold another ant standing on their shoulders. Puzzles are peppered throughout a rough-terrained world, but the ants are bad at climbing and tend to get stuck on things, slip and fall on their asses when going downhill and drop what they're carrying. There's a day-night cycle, and nights are pitch black unless you carry a light source or leave beacons around. Puzzle solutions tend to require timing, describing images, matching patterns, sound recognition, opening shortcuts, bridging distances, tossing items and generally operating the many gadgets you find in your Big Walk, which include but are very much not limited to flashlights, cameras, laser pointers, walkie talkies, binoculars, maps, radios, compasses, etc.
All puzzles require 2 to 4 people each, with world generation not including certain types of puzzles if you tell it only have 2 or 3 players at time of generation. Having more than 4 players justs adds to the chaotic fun though! There's no minimap or any global way of synchronizing with your friends, so you're supposed to plan ahead and make use of things like radio communication, fireworks and landmarks or you risk getting completely lost.
I suspect it will be quite a while until we finish our run as we battle the hardest puzzle of all, scheduling timeslots when 6-ish people can all be available at the same time. But we will persevere!
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Comment on I'm not ready to let this place go in ~tildes
Protected Link ParentDoesn't seem to work for me on Firefox with Tampermonkey. The console logs an invalid assignment to const state error.Doesn't seem to work for me on Firefox with Tampermonkey. The console logs an invalid assignment to const state error.
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Comment on What game are you terrible at? in ~games
Protected LinkI played a lot of Rocket League back when the community wasn't yet all horrible (I'd say before the sale to Epic and it becoming free to play). Great game but boy do I suck at it! I mean I was...I played a lot of Rocket League back when the community wasn't yet all horrible (I'd say before the sale to Epic and it becoming free to play). Great game but boy do I suck at it! I mean I was better than a beginner, and did certain things well, but I just couldn't progress past a certain skill level, especially with aerial motion.
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Comment on What game are you terrible at? in ~games
Protected Link ParentIt can help a lot with this problem (motion sickness) when your system is capable of rendering a higher frame rate. Do you have a 144hz+ monitor?scrolling rhythm games
It can help a lot with this problem (motion sickness) when your system is capable of rendering a higher frame rate. Do you have a 144hz+ monitor?
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Comment on Epic Games Store will support Linux "soon" in ~games
Protected Link ParentI think they're starting to see the writing on the wall as the number of gamers on linux slowly becomes non-negligible. Valve's efforts were instrumental. (Also, Microsoft is literally a...I think they're starting to see the writing on the wall as the number of gamers on linux slowly becomes non-negligible. Valve's efforts were instrumental. (Also, Microsoft is literally a competitor in that industry, and not a very nice one.)
I'm just "about done" with my move to Linux this weekend (I ended up choosing CachyOS). There are a dozen or two of irritants or things that don't quite work as well as I'd like but most of them are details tied to my extremely odd profile as a user (ancient productivity software, VR, stuff like that). Everything big or important "just works", or works no worse than Windows, with wine and proton being the main reason everything is so smooth, I think. (KDE Plasma 6 is also pretty great!)
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Comment on Is there any interest in building a Tildes successor? in ~tildes
Protected LinkI have an interest in the formula being further developed with the goal being almost exclusively helping this space be one in which more people can feel comfortable in community with each other,...I have an interest in the formula being further developed with the goal being almost exclusively helping this space be one in which more people can feel comfortable in community with each other, because it makes me sad when interesting people with interesting things to say feel the need to leave. As others have written, people rub each other wrong, so that has to be a group effort all the way. I don't think we should be looking for technological solutions with complex moderation paradigms, and I don't believe moderation can be fully crowdsourced (I also didn't believe this back on reddit or stack exchange).
Some people seem to think this isn't worth the effort. All I want to say is that it's easy to not care when we aren't the ones who will benefit. It's easy to not make any effort to engage in any real discussion about the subject and to deride the attempts of those who do. I get it. I'm fine with Tildes the way it is, too.
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Comment on How often are you eating plant based meals? in ~food
Protected LinkI hate processed meat substitutes, they typically don't agree with my digestion. But I love all kinds of vegetables and will happily eat vegetable-only meals; the frequency changes a lot. I just...I hate processed meat substitutes, they typically don't agree with my digestion. But I love all kinds of vegetables and will happily eat vegetable-only meals; the frequency changes a lot. I just had a sautéed carrot based dinner.
I'm not currently planning on giving up meat for any extended amount of time, but I don't need a lot of it in the meal. I consume plenty of eggs, cheese (many kinds) and butter. -
Comment on New label suggestion: a removable "One-sided" label that gradually reduces the comment's visibility in ~tildes
Protected Link ParentSure, but, from what you're saying: The person being shut down was being informed/given feedback; The local hierarchy was, if not running this bot, at least tacitly permitting it (like, I would...Sure, but, from what you're saying:
- The person being shut down was being informed/given feedback;
- The local hierarchy was, if not running this bot, at least tacitly permitting it (like, I would imagine we don't want bots here making certain kinds of arguments).
If you think this system can be adapted for Tildes in such a way that people feel welcome and heard here, then let's talk about it. Perhaps the volunteer team would be tasked with creating these templates and a consensus of two or more could get them attached to a comment without further human intervention?
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Comment on New label suggestion: a removable "One-sided" label that gradually reduces the comment's visibility in ~tildes
Protected (edited )Link ParentIt's probably bad that I immediately suspect a very specific post. I'm sorry you had that experience. I think if we had something like the solution I'm envisioning, multiple people could come...There was a very negative, dismissive post about my line of work and the people who do it.
It's probably bad that I immediately suspect a very specific post.
I'm sorry you had that experience. I think if we had something like the solution I'm envisioning, multiple people could come along who were marked as trusted guides and who could append information to the original post (not regular comments, but blurbs that would show below the original text), clarifying the narrowness of its perspective and presenting a different one.
EDIT: How about a "call" button for calling the volunteer guides to a specific comment or post without showing anything publicly? A bit like a "report to the volunteers" I suppose, but just for getting their attention.
I'm trying to think of ways we can keep this strictly constructive and educational, with no user-initiated (abusable) removals or demotions of any kind.
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Comment on New label suggestion: a removable "One-sided" label that gradually reduces the comment's visibility in ~tildes
Protected Link ParentOh, you posted this while I wrote my long-winded ramble leading to the same conclusion. I'll only add that I would prefer if this role did not have "strict" moderation powers. It would be for...Oh, you posted this while I wrote my long-winded ramble leading to the same conclusion.
I'll only add that I would prefer if this role did not have "strict" moderation powers. It would be for guiding and informing. Attempting to lead things in a positive direction.
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Comment on New label suggestion: a removable "One-sided" label that gradually reduces the comment's visibility in ~tildes
Protected LinkThis is a response to various things written here and in the other thread. Let me try to summarize how I feel about these proposals (and this is not an indictment of the character of the people...- Exemplary
This is a response to various things written here and in the other thread. Let me try to summarize how I feel about these proposals (and this is not an indictment of the character of the people making them, who I have a good opinion of):
I'm a firm believer in communication and dialogue. The proposals that have been made mean to provide users with a method for communicating with other users that is more restricted, one-sided and lower bandwidth than writing a response. I have a feeling that, all other things being equal, such systems are always much more easily abused by a majority than used by a minority.
I don't think we can substitute open communication with cold, unfeeling technology. I understand and acknowledge the arguments being made about the difficulty to educate people and how exhausting it can be for the victims of bad takes, and I don't mean to come off as privileged when reiterating that you have the option not to engage. But as a baseline I think it behooves all of us to be aware that we have that binary choice, for the sake of our own mental health: Either we are up for a conversation or we are not, and if we are not, that's OK. I am often not, myself. I try to gauge the amount of good faith in a response that was given to me and if I think the risk is too high when weighed against my own state of mind, I just don't. But I'm aware that that was the choice I made myself, for myself, and which I am responsible for.
Beyond that, I think it would be wonderful if we could all work together to become more educated. But if we are all equals participating in this platform, we can't simultaneously have a system for crowdsourcing education call-outs while presuming that the uneducated are the majority (consider any specific topic). I don't think that will trend toward usefulness in the long run, as the uninformed majority will - possibly innocently - use this tool in the defence of their own misguided perspective. Since it's a tool that can be used for lowering comment visibility, this will enable a form of distributed bullying that, at least for me, would put a much greater toll on my mental health.
So getting back to the point, if Tildes is meant to be a welcoming community that is unwelcoming of certain (bad - hopefully!) perspectives, visibility algorithms aren't going to solve the problem - people are. At the end of the day, I know there are a lot of great people in this community who know how to be kind and empathetic. We have to acknowledge that what is being said is that there are some of us who are further along that path than others. I'd like to propose some kind of human solution - a solution that, rather than treating every person as an opaque, replaceable node in the social graph, introduces tools to help some of the best among us guide the others (and let me say right now I'm not one of these people).
I think that helps solve the problem by letting respected community members who are feeling more mentally resilient volunteer to help guide conversations and keep an eye out for such things as one-sided perspectives or insufficiently-founded arguments. People in the minority don't have to feel like they have to defend themselves alone and misinformed people aren't given tools they can use to do harm.
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Comment on Help with troubleshooting PC hardware in ~tech
Protected Link ParentWhen I first replied here I considered the possibility of a CMOS issue, but it sounds from the description that the computer doesn't even get going electrically - the fans aren't spinning. I...When I first replied here I considered the possibility of a CMOS issue, but it sounds from the description that the computer doesn't even get going electrically - the fans aren't spinning. I believe the issue described by the redditor would require the computer to be running electrically, just with a black screen and no progress into the OS (but let me know if I'm wrong).
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Comment on Help with troubleshooting PC hardware in ~tech
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Comment on Help with troubleshooting PC hardware in ~tech
Protected Link ParentThank you for the pics, that looks fine. You should probably refer to promonk's advice next.Thank you for the pics, that looks fine. You should probably refer to promonk's advice next.
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Comment on Help with troubleshooting PC hardware in ~tech
Protected LinkCould you perhaps share a photo of the innards? (or more) Are all the plugs inserted properly, flush and in their right places? Especially power plugs? Is... is there a CPU on the motherboard?...Could you perhaps share a photo of the innards? (or more)
Are all the plugs inserted properly, flush and in their right places? Especially power plugs?
Is... is there a CPU on the motherboard? There are a bunch of debug LEDs on this board, are you sure nothing else is lit?
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Comment on Albums based on a recurring musical phrase in ~music
Protected LinkThank you all for the recommendations, I've already listened to a couple and I'll keep listening to more over time!Thank you all for the recommendations, I've already listened to a couple and I'll keep listening to more over time!
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Comment on Albums based on a recurring musical phrase in ~music
Protected Link ParentI just listened to this one, this is definitely my jam, thanks for the recommendation. Feel free to share some more of your knowledge with us if you like!I just listened to this one, this is definitely my jam, thanks for the recommendation. Feel free to share some more of your knowledge with us if you like!
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Comment on Albums based on a recurring musical phrase in ~music
Protected Link ParentI know War of the Worlds, great example!I know War of the Worlds, great example!
Describing things is always fun, as is trying to communicate without words. We haven't done that much yet (3 towers) but I'm looking forward to more puzzles that require separation. We've only had two, one with a chair lift and one with a flare.
Motion-based (toss-based) puzzles have been a bit hit and miss I'd say.
Some of us hate it when you're forced to leave your items behind!